Reflections

Of Trees and Memories

by Janice MacLean | Jul 5, 2017 | Memoir, Reflections

A Prayer Bench Guest Post By Rosemary Ingraham, Arrowwood Alberta This sunny Sunday afternoon, I’m sitting on my deck, under the canopy of my mountain ash tree, while being serenaded by any number of songbirds. When my husband and I were married, 49 years ago today,...

Summer Soul 2017

by Janice MacLean | Jun 6, 2017 | Ordinary

Welcome to Summer Soul 2017 Thank you for registering for Summer Soul. It is a package so full of resources to inspire and nurture your soul in summer that it overflowed. Below are the extras! I hope you enjoy the package and the extras here. Please "Leave a reply"...

Contemplative Moments

by Janice MacLean | Apr 17, 2017 | Ordinary, Reflections

These contemplative moment cards invite us to pay attention, be grateful, and aware of the gifts of this moment. All we have is this moment. In this exact moment, something of our life is here to be...

I Remember the Laughter

by Janice MacLean | Apr 16, 2017 | Memoir, Reflections

It was on an Easter Sunday, 1972 I believe and Grant United Church, my home church, the little church by the Lake, saw a rather large confirmation class lined up along the front of the church. There were four of us. We had memorized the shorter catechism — and knew a...

Such Great Hope is Spring

by Janice MacLean | Mar 15, 2017 | Ordinary, Reflections

Guest Post by Linda Atkinson Linda Atkinson lives in Hardwood Lands, Nova Scotia. From her home there, and influenced by her years as a camping enthusiast and recreation professional, she enjoys observing and playing in the natural world. Late last spring, from my...

Read to Pieces

by Janice MacLean | Mar 7, 2017 | Ordinary, Reflections

Here is a story that touched my heart. It's about a Family Bible. You know the one. It was passed down through the ages and every generation added the family births, weddings and deaths. This Family Bible was read to pieces. Literally. The pages were loose, leaves...

Essential Oils & Self Care

by Janice MacLean | Mar 4, 2017 | Reflections, Video Conversations

Meet Kathy Roy from Heart & Soul Living who talks with me about her interest in Essential Oils and describes some of the ways Essential Oils are used for self-care. Learn more about Heart and Soul Living. Kathy's Essential Oil Page. Essential Oils with...

Ash Wednesday 2017

by Janice MacLean | Feb 22, 2017 | Lectionary & Scripture, Reflections

Ash Wednesday brings us back to Earth. What are these ashes? Perhaps they are last Easter’s palm hosanna’s waved in joy, now presented to the fire. Once full of life, now grey-shadowed dust transformed, and lying in a waiting bowl. Ash Wednesday brings us back to...

Prayer Settling Jars

by Janice MacLean | Feb 21, 2017 | Reflections, Video Conversations

Anne Pirie makes beautiful Prayer Settling Jars. They are lovely to look at, beautiful to hold, and an inviting way to settle into retreat time. In this Skype conversation, Anne Shares how she uses Prayer Settling Jars in her own life and with the children in her...

Book Review: Terrifying Freedom

by Janice MacLean | Feb 21, 2017 | Book Reviews, Reflections

I might not have chosen this book, Terrifying Freedom by Linda Anne Smith except I noticed the author was Canadian. There were a few worrying moments in the first part when I wondered if I was reading "just another love story." It is. Yet a bigger Love Story than I...

Candlemas Day

by Janice MacLean | Jan 26, 2017 | Lectionary & Scripture, Reflections

When you wake on February 2, you are 40 days from Christmas. You might think it is Groundhog Day, but alongside this celebration of forecasting hope or gloom, it is also Candlemas. Candlemas is very old tradition rooted in the visit of Mary and Joseph to the Temple...

Re-Imagining

by Janice MacLean | Jan 19, 2017 | Ordinary, Reflections

As often happens, I was looking for something else when I discovered Andy Warhol's visual re-imagining of The Last Supper. His work on this theme were among the last of his visual art career. Leonardo Da Vinci's Last Supper...

“Neighbours” – By Annika Sangster

by Janice MacLean | Jan 7, 2017 | Book Reviews, Reflections

Annika's wee book, Neighbours, arrived. I love holding it in my hands. It feels inviting. It is a delight to absorb the bright pictures. Her re-telling of the story of the Good Samaritan pulls you in. I showed it to a nine-year-old who immediately sat on the floor...

2017 Yearly Subscriptions

by Janice MacLean | Jan 4, 2017 | Ordinary, Reflections

Prayer Bench friends, There are two Subscription Packages for 2017. You can compare them in the poster below (click to enlarge). Or click here if you want to see it in full size and you can download and print it. Prayer Bench 2017 Yearly Subscriptions. Click on the...

The Shepherds Came

by Janice MacLean | Dec 24, 2016 | Lectionary & Scripture, Reflections

She holds him in the cradle of her arm, a soft, swaddled weight that fits just right. She intones the story. On the night that you were born the sky was a lovely dark and the stars shone brighter than any night I ever saw. On the hill behind the...

Jesus Christ the Apple Tree

by Janice MacLean | Dec 15, 2016 | Ordinary, Reflections

The day of the first snow was heavy and wet It settled on trees like a heavy cloak. Young Jasmine woke and quickly dressed in her pink snowsuit And kneeling in the snow, she freed the branches of her “baby apple tree” from the weight of snow. Perhaps it was the...

The Visit in the Hill Country

by Janice MacLean | Dec 1, 2016 | Audio Blog, Reflections

Take a few minutes to look at the statue of Mary and Elizabeth. This statue stands in the hill country and outside the Church of the Visitation in Ein Kerem, Jerusalem. Here is a simple process for Lectio Divina (Sacred Reading) to use with the audio recording. Listen...

Wood in Stone

by Janice MacLean | Nov 29, 2016 | Photos for Eye & Soul, Reflections

It takes a long time for wood to become stone and a slow letting go to become something new. In the press of these Advent days We wait And we listen for invitations that ever so slowly make us a new thing. [Pause and breathe into what is pressing upon you.] Photo...

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